MIASMS IN HOMOEOPATHY

MIASMS IN HOMOEOPATHY

INTRODUCTION

Miasms  in homoeopathy are considered as the most vital part in understanding diseases as well as a vital key to a successful prescription.

These are considered as the most fundamental aspects of a diseases specially of a chronic character  as they represent a manifestation of an internal derangement.

SO WHAT DO THEY MEAN

In simple sense they are a predisposition to a particular disease inherited or acquire.

THE THEORY IN ACTUAL

According to the theory of miasms it is said that behind a given case of disease specially of a chronic character their lies a particular cause which dries the disease to expand itself beyond the body innate efficient immune response and resisting it thereby rendering it to continue actively life long and giving it a chronic character.

It also represent they way of body’s response to a given state of disease. Which is manifested  in three basic ways.

1.               The functional change for example – inflammation – psoric taint

2.               The structural change e.g. organic structural changes like, warts and tumors or over growth, sycotic taint.

3.               The de-generative or destructive change e.g. ulcers

Syphilitic taint

As per the concept of miasms diseases are the result of a pure form or a combination of any of the three taint listed above.

Strikingly even as the disease progresses in the same fashion i.e. starts from functional changes (psoric) and ends in destruction (syphilitic)

THE ORIGIN AND EVOLUTION OF THE CONCEPT OF MIASMS

Actually Hahnemann was not the first person to coin the term miasms for the first time in history of medical science. It was  Hippocrates who use the word to denote the actual material cause of disease. i.e. virus or bacteria.

Hahnemann  later expanded this superficial idea of the term miasm to a much deeper  and wider description stating it as not a mere cause of disease but a pre disposition to a disease. He realised this when he found troubles and rapid unsuccessful attempts to cure patients with a chronic diseases with the best possible selected medicine which primarily relieved the suffering but later failed to respite and reappeared and remitted again and again. Which led him to retrospect himself in order to improve his prescription.

Where he found himself ignoring this deepest tendency. This was after which the miasm theory originated in Hahnemann’s book “THE CHRONIC DISEASE” published in 1828.

Psora being the earliest discovered miasm represented an internal the range state and a cause that had a tendency to maintain the progress of a disease of a function character which rather manifested itself as an  ‘itch’. And after through observation found out various manifestation of this under lying miasm and also found it as most basic miasm or in other word mother of all miasms.

Even as per Stuart Close in his book  THE GENIUS OF MEDICINE writes “many superficial critics have redicule the idea of itch, known before Hahnemann’s day to be due to a minute but a visible animal parasite the acarus scabiei was the cause of a local disease. They did not considered that, even if this were  true it might be a host, a carrier or another small infectious micro organism in the same way as the same way the mosquito was the carrier of infection.

Psora was considered as a non veneral miasm which contacted itself after contact via skin and when suppressed by the use of heroic external application entered the human at a very deeper level internalising the disease  making it a more general phenomena and also pre disposing a human organism to a wide spectrum of diseases.

Simillarly, later two other veneral  misam SYCOSIS AND SYPHILIS were also incorporated in this concept which were the result of  transmission by veneral route followed by suppression of  the local manifestation by use of strong heroic applications and internalising the disease making it a state rather than a local phenomena.

UTILITY OF MIASMS IN HOMOEOPATHY:

After the advent and evolution of this theory Hahnemann gave a wider view in understanding the disease and the phenomenon underlying the disease process.This has helped the homoeopathic prescriber to be more accurate in understanding the given disease deeply and not considering this as a local issue.

 Also furthermore it also helps in eradication of the tendencies of these barriers which don’t allow rapid and permanent cure.Thereby restoring  the suffering patient and also preventing their relapses and thereby curing them in true sense.

THE EXPANSION OF THE CONCEPT

Since the advent of the concept of miasms the stalwarts and proponents of homoeopathy have made successful attempts to further expand the horizon of miasmatic theory keeping the basic ground the same as kept and set by Dr.Hahnemann himself.This has further helped homoeopathy evolve and stand shoulder to shoulder and also understand the ever changing and mutating diseases.Stalwarts like Dr.Kent also had improved the refinement in understanding miasm and also identifying remedies which had the potential to produce the same miasmatic environment in the human body.

Even after these many years this concept is ever evolving and bridging the gap and giving a wider view in understanding the disease.